Review
Alright so today I’m back with yet another chapter review and today we will go over chapter 243 which is insane. So be sure to stick till the end because you don’t want to miss it. Anyway, I’m gonna stop talking and let’s get right into the chapter.
Flashbacks and Realizations
We begin chapter 200 and 43 by still being in Ness’s and Kaiser’s flashbacks. Ness is lying on the field when suddenly Kaiser asks him if he believes in the impossible. Ness is caught off guard by his question and is upright, confused. Kaiser tells him that just now the thought of giving up flashed in Ness’s mind. He tells Ness that thinking like that is a curse and also calls him a stupid scrub. Kaiser points to his chest and says that the moment people believe things are impossible, they are programmed to give up like some kind of useless survival mechanism. However, that’s the thought process of the weak. While you protect your pathetic hide, you kill and seal off your potential. He looks disgusted and disappointed as he says that you sacrifice your talent in exchange for living a long and tedious life. Those trash who do that are the ones he hates the most.
Transformation and Teamwork
Ness is still trying to process this and has nothing to say back, so Kaiser just keeps on talking. He admits that their opponents are good but they’re only executing what is possible at a very high level and that Kaiser doesn’t see a truly strong player among them. But he looks back at Ness and says that he’s different. Kaiser tells Ness that his dribbling and the timing of his passes were like he was imagining plays one step ahead. However, it failed because Ness didn’t have a partner that understood his ideas. But with Kaiser, all of Ness’s ideas will become possible. Kaiser, looking more majestic than ever, puts out his hand and tells Ness to get up and to crush them. Ness is hesitant and confused but still takes Kaiser’s hand, and in that moment, he decides to gamble and put his trust in Kaiser. The game restarts with Kaiser on Ness’s side.
Ness, thinking to himself, says that if this is how he’s going to go out, then he will use all his creativity, magic, and everything. He’s got to team up with Kaiser, which is exactly what he does as he dribbles behind an opponent. After that, the perfect timing has come, and he looks over to Kaiser, who’s fully emerged in this game. Ness passes the ball and says that thanks to Kaiser, he’s got more options to work with. However, he sees that with Kaiser’s position and the number of players around him, they will shut down his shot angle in no time and says that Kaiser has nowhere to shoot. But thinking like that doesn’t work for Kaiser as he shoots an outstanding shot against the goal while saying that they are full of holes, and to everyone’s surprise, the ball actually goes into the net, making it one to two, leaving the scout and Ness mind-blown.
Victory and Character Development
Ness is in shock, wondering what just happened, and says that Kaiser’s shooting motion is out of this world. Kaiser lands on the ground, looking cooler than ever, as he tells Ness or loser to give him the next one as well, and Ness, with big eyes, just has to take him up on that offer. Their unstoppable teamwork leads to another and even another goal, with Kaiser scoring every goal and ending the match with a three to two win.
After the match, the scout comes forward and congratulates both Alexis Ness and Michael Kaiser on joining Bastard Munch. It was in that tryout that Kaiser and Ness showed them the impossible and also met for the very first time. After that, we get into the Bastard Munch clubhouse where they are eating their lunch. Ness asks if Kaiser isn’t going to drink his milk, and Kaiser explains that he hates milk or, in fact, any white-colored drinks overall, which I thought was quite funny. If that wasn’t bad enough, we also saw them coming late for training. Kaiser tries to get out of the trouble and blame Ness. However, I think we can all see whose fault it really was, like Bro looks like he woke up five minutes ago. If that wasn’t wholesome enough, we also see them laughing and looking happy while showering. After that, Ness cuts Kaiser’s hair, and Kaiser tells Ness something personal.
The Blue Rose Symbolism
Kaiser explains that originally he was a mentally weak person, which really caught Ness off guard. Kaiser says that he constantly gave up when he faced things he believed to be impossible, which is why he reminded himself to never, ever again fall into that weak mindset. This is the reason for the blue rose tattoo on his neck. As a blue rose symbolizes the achievement of the impossible artificially created, its unique blue color was not initially seen in nature, meaning an impossibility turned to reality. When Kaiser first saw the blue rose, he saw it as an example of turning the impossible into reality, a symbol of defiance and a sign of defying the natural order of things. And that was just what Kaiser was searching for as he wanted to become someone who couldn’t be defined by the impossible.
Ness is looking with bright eyes and says that the story is incredible in his head. He thought that seeing how Kaiser was willing to open up to him made Ness happy. After that, Kaiser announced that he would win the Champions League and the World Cup, then cast down the rest of the football world into despair. Ness laughs and says that it sounds just like him. He also asks Kaiser what he thinks of his new haircut. Kaiser says that it’s good and that he just wanted to cut it short because it was starting to get in the way. He then asks how the dye is coming into the hair. Ness releases Kaiser’s hair and says that it looks really good and that it’s a beautiful shade of blue, while thinking that one day Kaiser’s dream also became his dream, as it’s because of Kaiser that Ness still believes in magic.
A Dark Turn
After that, we get back into real time, and Ness walks into Kaiser’s room and is shocked to see him on the floor. While having his hands around his neck, Ness, in a panic, runs as fast as he can over to Kaiser and asks what he is doing. As he gets close, he sees that it’s Kaiser who’s deliberately choking himself and screams at him to stop it. Kaiser takes his hands away from his neck and sees that he finally found it. He has a maniac look on his face as he says that he found a way to destroy Isagi once and for all and a way to turn the tables with his new weapon. And while Kaiser is looking furious and scary, Ness is looking at him with big and happy eyes. The text at the bottom says, “an ego that seeks to devour everything in his path.” In his pursuit of destroying Asahi, Kaiser discovers a new weapon. As the game against PXG draws closer, the Emperor signals his counterattack.
Predictions for the Next Chapter
Now moving on, the next chapter is called PXG, so I guess we can pretty easily assume that we will finally see the PXG team or at least an insight into their team formation or just players in general, as we barely know anyone outside of the Blue Lock players. Of course, we only know about Loki and that other guy that people speculated to be a new Gen 11. But so far we have nothing confirmed, and to be honest, PXG definitely doesn’t need a new Gen 11 when they already have both Ri and Shida as an offensive. They must be one of the strongest teams alongside Bastard Munch. But when you think about it, then each team is pretty strong, or maybe except FC Barchan, who for some reason got absolutely done over like they got Bachir, Otoya, and Lavin, and that’s it. It’s no wonder that they have lost each of their games. But a prediction in the middle of the review: FC Barchan will win against Shine City. I think that they will win because it would be too unfair for them to lose every single one of their games, and also because Nagai and Rio are playing horribly right now.
Final Thoughts
Now, let’s talk about the chapter at hand. I really liked what Kaiser said at the start about how thinking about giving up is a curse, and this panel was just done amazingly, with Kaiser saying that sacrificing your talent in exchange for living a long and tedious life while outright looking disgusted just by thinking about that.
Before, we never really saw Kaiser talk in depth about his past or his weaknesses, and I found that quite refreshing. This is the first time he opened up to someone, and it’s really nice to see their friendship develop. Also, the blue rose symbolism was nice, as I’ve heard of it before but never knew what it stood for. The twist at the end, with Kaiser losing it and trying to choke himself, made me feel that this arc is going to take a dark turn, and I really like that, so I’m excited to see what’s coming next.